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When answering this, you really need to put the situation into context. Ishmael is a mere child when he was forced into the army. I think that "force" is the operative word here. Once he entered the camp he was indoctrinated into a mindset. He was also pumped up full of drugs that his own reality was muddled at best. The country was in chaos; there was nowhere to go. So no, Ishmael cannot be held responsible. Unlike traditional war criminals, Beah was a boy. He was forced by adults to fight or be killed himself. The mind of a child is very different than the mind of an adult. In the end Beah adapted to his environment. Although abused beyond belief, Ishmael was a survivor. Most of the people he killed were trying to kill him. As a mere boy in a jungle hopped up on cocaine and gunpowder, what is a child supposed to do?